Some experts have urged the federal government to support domestic production and mechanised agriculture to reduce inflation.

They made these remarks in separate interviews with journalists in Lagos on Friday.

Sherifdeen Tella from the Department of Economics at Babcock University, Ogun, called for greater support for domestic production to control inflation.

“The government should adopt friendly macroeconomic policies that encourage local production.

“This will help manufacturers integrate backwards, rely less on imported raw materials, and increase market supply,” Mr Tella said.

He stressed that the government should incentivise local investors to establish refined petrochemical plants, given Nigeria’s vast crude oil reserves.

“This will enable the country to achieve self-sufficiency in refined petroleum products, promote competition in the sector, and reduce transportation costs,” he added.

Similarly, Nnamdi Ifenkwe, project coordinator at Nissi Agro Allied Services, urged the government to encourage more youths to engage in mechanised farming.

“This will ensure food security and help curb frequent price increases in the domestic market, which have significantly contributed to food inflation,” Mr Ifenkwe said.

He emphasised that reducing the cost of refined crude oil would help lower logistics expenses.

“The high cost of logistics is a major factor often behind the rise in food prices,” he added.

Boniface Okesie, president of the Progressive Shareholders Association of Nigeria, urged the government to continue addressing security challenges contributing to food inflation.

“Investing in sophisticated surveillance drones will help mitigate threats to farmers. This will allow them to cultivate their crops without fear for their lives or property,” Mr Okesie said.

He stressed the need for measures to reduce post-harvest losses in farming communities.

“Government collaboration with the private sector to build storage facilities and key infrastructure will help address post-harvest losses,” he said.

He added that poor road networks in agrarian communities remain a major challenge.

Nigeria’s annual inflation rate dropped to 24.48 per cent in January from 34.80 per cent in December 2024, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The statistician-general of the federation and NBS chief executive officer, Adeyemi Adeniran, disclosed this in Abuja at the launch of the rebased consumer price index (CPI) report.

The NBS stated that the rebased CPI reflects an updated price reference period (base year) of 2024 and a weight reference period of 2023.

(NAN)